Latest Eurasia Daily Monitor Articles
KYRGYZ NGOs CALL ON GOVERNMENT TO FIGHT ORGANIZED CRIME
By-elections for Kyrgyzstan's parliament were held on Sunday April 9. Reputed mafia chief Rysbek Akmatbayev won 79% of the votes in the parliamentary by-elections in Balykchi, Kyrgyzstan. Akmatbayev has a criminal reputation and is known to have strong connections with top government officials. His victory... MORE
RUSSIA AND TAJIKISTAN HOLD JOINT ANTI-TERROR EXERCISES
Russia and Tajikistan have completed anti-terrorist drills in Tajikistan aimed at improving cooperation between the two states as part of their anti-terrorist strategy. Although such exercises are a regular occurrence, reflecting strong bilateral security cooperation, the exercises themselves differed in significant ways from previous high-profile... MORE
ADYGEI LEADER CONTINUES TO CHALLENGE KREMLIN
Last weak Adygeya was rocked by the unexpected announcement of the local president's resignation, followed quickly by an even more surprising reversal. On April 4 the president of Adygeya, Khasret Sovmen, announced his resignation during a session of the republican parliament. Although his press service... MORE
TURKMENISTAN SEEKS TO STRENGTHEN ENERGY TIES WITH CHINA
Turkmen President Saparmurat Niyazov and Chinese President Hu Jintao signed a framework agreement on oil and gas cooperation in Beijing on April 3. Niyazov was in Beijing for a six-day visit to China. The trip underlined the growing ties between the two countries in culture,... MORE
TURKMENISTAN-CHINA GAS AGREEMENT UNREALISTICALLY AMBITIOUS
Visiting China on April 2-7, President Saparmurat Niyazov of Turkmenistan signed with his Chinese counterpart Hu Jintao a "general agreement" on Turkmen gas deliveries to China and construction of a pipeline to link the two countries. Turkmen state media have published the agreement's text, and... MORE
GAZPROM SQUEEZING BELARUS
Addressing an international energy conference on April 4-5 in Moscow, Gazprom Vice-Chairman Alexander Ryazanov threatened to raise the price of gas to Belarus to "at least triple the present level" after December 31, 2006, so as to bring the price for Belarus "in line with... MORE
RUSSIAN ORTHODOX CHURCH CHALLENGES “WESTERN” CONCEPT OF HUMAN RIGHTS
In its persistent efforts to craft a new national ideology that would underscore Russia's "civilizational uniqueness" and distinguish it from the liberal West, the Kremlin leadership has turned to the Orthodox Church -- the country's most conservative and anti-Western institution. Predictably, the "unholy alliance" of... MORE
WESTERN-TRAINED PROFESSIONALS DOMINATE NEW AFGHAN CABINET
On March 23 Afghan President Hamid Karzai offered his newly reconstituted cabinet to the new Afghan parliament for a vote of confidence. After days of wrangling, the parliament unanimously approved the formation of the new cabinet on Saturday, April 1. However, the process to approve... MORE
KREMLIN PLAN TO MERGE ADYGEYA MEETS UNEXPECTED OBSTACLE
On April 4, the second session of the newly elected parliament of Adygeya, a region in the western section of the North Caucasus, ended abruptly when President Khasret Sovmen announced his resignation. The Adygei leader had come to parliament to observe the process to select... MORE
BLESSING ARMENIA’S DEBT SERVITUDE
On March 31 in Moscow, the Foundation for the Orthodox Peoples' Unity bestowed its annual award on Armenian President Robert Kocharian and Russia's Gazprom company for their support to Russian spiritual and religious values (Noyan Tapan, March 31). By fortuitous coincidence, Gazprom doubled the price... MORE